Shades of Darkened Evil
by Wolfsbane706
Summary: When Gensokyo's maiden spellcasters, including Mima's very own apprentice, disappear, everyone assumes the Secret History Association is to blame. However, with the introduction of several new organizations into Gensokyo, there's very little that can be done to determine the real culprit, if there is one. A story of the Danmakuverse.
1. Chapter 1: Curtain Call

A black-cloaked figure stood watch over the white Gensokyan landscape. It looked dramatic, sure, but if one looked close enough, they could see the obviously-feminine shape of the cloaked figure shaking. Despite her status as a former Deaconess of the Church of the Shaded Path, Jacqueline Cross was _freezing__. _When she'd rescued Rumia, the little Darkness Youkai had failed to mention that winters in Gensokyo would be so _cold__! _Then again, Jacqueline had _never __actually __bothered_ to ask Rumia about _any_ of the weather in the world the little Darkness Youkai called home. After all, nobody could have predicted the untimely end of her homeworld.

_Well__, __not __so __much __an__ "__end__" __as __it __was __just__ "__turning __into __an __uninhabitable __wasteland__"._ Jacqueline mused, examining the landscape from her perch atop a tree in the middle of what Rumia had described as the "Forest of Magic". Iremchia's "destruction" had landed it's residents in varying dimensions throughout the multiverse, or at least that's what Jacqueline had been told by one Yumemi Okazaki. Supposedly, her connection to a Gensokyo resident had made her gravitate towards Gensokyo after Irmechia had been rendered Forsaken.

Then again, considering Yumemi was only 18, it wasn't that unlikely that she was simply making stuff up.

"_Hey__, __up __there__!"_ came a voice. Jacqueline recognized it as Yumemi's. _"__If __you__'__re __quite __done __faffing __about__, __get __your __sorry __arse __down __here__! __I __don__'__t __have __all __bloody __day __to __wait __for __you __to __get __your __bearings__!"_

The redhead's irritation probably had something to do with how long Jacqueline had been up in that tree-a value quickly closing in on a full hour-and so the former Cleric grumbled softly under her breath. Yumemi had a habit of being blunt, but she also had a habit of being right. "Alright, dammit." she said softly. Loudly enough for Yumemi to hear, she replied "I'll be right down, so hush up!"

With the "I'll be right downs" out of the way, Jacqueline set about figuring out just how she was gonna do that. Jumping was out of the question. Even if she used her Darkness Blades to slice through the branches on the way down, it would still hurt if she missed some, and then there was the landing, which would_also_ hurt.

Her other option was to climb down, but that would probably end up making Yumemi even more irritated than she already was. It had taken Jacqueline a solid ten minutes to climb to the top of this tree in the first place, and she'd already wasted another fifteen examining the landscape so she knew what was where (not that she could put names to the various landmarks), so by the time she actually got out of the tree and onto the ground, she'd have wasted almost an entire hour of Yumemi's time.

After considering her options, she decided to jump. Making a slide, now that she considered it, wasn't too far out of the question. Her ability was, after all, based around Constructs made from Darkness. Her ability also, though, had been closely linked to the Shadowlands she'd once called home, and so it had been more than a little unstable since arriving in Gensokyo. All in all, it was hit and miss as to whether or not it would work, so Jacqueline took a breath, and jumped.

It was a very anti-climactic drop. No branches got in the way, no birds yelled at her for disturbing their peace, and she actually managed to stick the landing, ending up in a crouch right beside Yumemi. "Any questions, Jacqueline, or can we get going?" Yumemi asked curtly.

Jacqueline stood up, brushing herself off. "Actually, now that you mention it, yeah. There's a lake over to the east. Above it there's this big floating hunk of metal. What-"

Yumemi interrupted before Jacqueline could elaborate further. "That 'floating hunk of metal' is the _Phoenix_. According to my sources, it's not even from this time period. That lake it's floating above is the Misty Lake. A lot of faeries live there on that lake, most notably Cirno."

"Hey, that name sounds familiar!" Jacqueline immediately turned to the east and got ready to bolt off only for Yumemi to grab her cloak's hood.

"Hold _still_, you twit. I thought you wanted to go to the village?"

* * *

_**Human **__**Village **__**Outskirts**_

"I dunno about you, Master, but I'm pretty sure that's not Krysia."

"Quiet, Princess."

"What did I do this time?!"

"I said _quiet__!_" The two figures laying prone behind a cluster of bushes watched the village carefully. "This isn't even Irmechia. Whatever was going on, we're on another world."

"How can you tell, Master?"

"Don't ask."

The one referred to as "Princess" grudgingly obliged. She looked over her shoulder to see if anyone was coming, thankfully discovering otherwise. "Hey Master," she started, turning back to face the village. "Shouldn't we just go down there and visit? I mean, they're not gonna hurt us, are they?"

The one referred to as "Master" huffed softly. "We don't know that. This is a completely different world from the one we left."

A third voice chimed in. "Well if you're that unfamiliar with Gensokyo, I'll be more than happy to show you around."

"Master" swiftly turned, picked up a polearm that had been laying next to him, and pointed it at the third voice's owner, a red haired young girl with bells in her hair. The Lance-wielding man lowered his weapon and stood up, helping "Princess" to stand up, regardless of whether or not she wanted his help. "And suppose we accept your offer. I'd like to know the name of our guide."

The redhead stuck her hand out to shake, grinning. "The name's Kosuzu Motoori, at your service!" she said enthusiastically. "I help out at the bookstore in the village."

The Lance wielder shook Kosuzu's hand, nodding. "Adam Toroh. Bounty hunter. The girl is my apprentice, Princess Annaliece Decarion." Annaliece stood up and smiled warmly at her introduction, turning to face the village.

"Shall we get going, then?" the princess asked of Kosuzu, who'd already started down the snow-covered hill.

"Of course!" replied the bookish shopkeeper. "Just follow me, okay?"

Adam and Annaliece both nodded and followed Kosuzu down into the village, not expecting to bump into a _surprisingly _familiar face.

* * *

_**Tower **__**of **__**the **__**Court**__** - **__**Gensokyo**_

Gensokyo was never supposed to have a Forgotten Tower. Having originated on Earth, which had no magic to speak of, Gensokyo had simply been passed over by the Court. However, when Irmechia was Forsaken, the Tower for that world had moved. This had never happened before, and so it left some of the Court mages quite puzzled. Not even the Last Elder, the oldest of the Ten Court Mages, knew what was going on.

But despite the misgivings and shortcomings of the Court of High Magic, they still went about business as usual, which meant summoning the nearest mages of any respectable power level and Calling them before the Court.


	2. Chapter 2: Called

Marisa Kirisame took stock of her surroundings. One minute, she'd been mixing a new potion in her house, the next she was in this creepy looking tower antechamber. She wasn't the only one to have been warped away from her home, either. Byakuren Hijiri was also in the room, with her scroll in hand and an indignant look on her face. She seemed to be staring through the doorway ahead at something.

Off to Marisa's left was Alice Margatroid, her neighbor in the Forest of Magic. Alice had a threaded sewing needle in her right hand and her summoned grimoire in her left. She didn't share Byakuren's look, instead opting for one of fright.

Also present, surprisingly, was Patchouli Knowledge, book and pen in hands. She'd opted to take notes rather than focus on the situation at hand.

Behind her, unnoticed by anybody else, was Seiga Kaku, the evil Hermit once allied with the Lady of Strange Deaths. She was just as mystified as Marisa was.

Marisa, however, was more interested in what was beyond the doorway. She'd barely taken two steps, though, before Alice called to stop her. "Marisa, hold up." Marisa trusted Alice, and she also knew the Magician almost intimately. She was a little surprised to see the puppeteer pilot in her flight uniform, though.

"Since when did you wear your flight uniform around your house?" Marisa asked, scratching her blonde-haired head with a gloved hand. Alice's choice to become a volunteer pilot was common knowledge to those that knew her, but Marisa had never actually seen the futuristic (literally) flight uniform Alice wore up close. Now that she had that opportunity, she drank in the details. It seemed to be just a long black coat with three belts across the chest, with the center belt running opposite the other two. Alice had the coat closed, so Marisa couldn't see what was under it, but she still knew what it was.

"I'll explain later." Alice commented curtly, regarding her uniform. "For now, we have much bigger issues to deal with."

Marisa followed Alice's gaze into the large chamber ahead of them. She could see a couple high-backed seats in direct view of the doorway. What surprised, her though, was that those seats were occupied by suits of armor. Those armors were actually very ornate compared to what Marisa was used to, probably meant for decoration rather than any practical combat protection. Her sharp eyes could make out gold filigree on one and a platinum breastplate on the other. Her fingers were starting to itch just from looking at the armors.

In short, she wanted one, and she wasn't gonna leave until she had one or until she was forced out the door.

"_You __may __enter__." _Those words almost resonated inside Marisa's head, and she had to shake it off in order to understand the mental push that had come with the command: _The __Witch __King_. The young witch's body moved smoothly into the chamber, followed by those of Patchouli (who was just as surprised as Marisa), Alice (who was still frightened), Byakuren (who still had that indignant look, albeit somewhat faded at this point), and Seiga (who was hunting escape routes to use her hairpin on).

Eventually, once all five were inside what appeared to be the main room of whatever building this was, Marisa got her chance to look around. There weren't just two sets of armor, oh no. There were ten, each one ornately decorated, but different in design from the first two. Marisa's eyes sparkled at the possibility of "borrowing" each and every one. _"__You __have __been __Called __before __the __Court __of __High __Magic __because __of __your __innate __magical __ability__." _explained the Witch King.

Marisa's focus shifted from the armor to the speaker. "Okay, so we're magic users." she repeated. "What's that got to do with anything?" She fished around in her many large pockets for her _hakkero _and started tossing it up and down when she found it. "Personally, I think that 'high magic' stuff is just bull." She caught the _hakkero _mid-drop, struck a pose ,much to the embarrassment of the other mages she'd been Called with, and began charging a spell. "I'm gonna give ya one good reason why you shouldn't mess with me while I'm mixing a potion!"

"Marisa, hold your fire!" Alice called, placing her hand on Marisa's arm to accompany her order. "These mages are _far _out of your league!" The Puppeteer didn't really know this to be fact, but her mother had once been a part of the Court, and considering that Shinki's own abilities were astronomically high (she claimed to have held back against Marisa and company all those years ago) when she'd only been numbered eighth of the Court, Alice had no doubt that Marisa would get her ass handed to her should she challenge the Court of High Magic in its entirety.

And of course, in typical Marisa Kirisame fashion, she opted not to listen to Alice's warnings. "There's only one way to find out, and you know it." she retorted, wearing that wolfish grin that had made the Ordinary Witch famous. She raised her _hakkero _and aimed it at the Witch King's armor. _"__Master __Spark__!" _The spell Marisa had been charging immediately flared out from the crystal that made up the _hakkero_'s focal point. A wildly intricate magical circle sparked with barely contained magical energy as the famed Master Spark launched from the _hakkero_.

Unfortunately for Marisa, her spell never connected with her intended victim. A loud shout of _"__Verweigern__!" _from a voice to her left would normally have meant absolutely nothing to the youngest spellcaster of the bunch. However, since this shout was associated with the barrier that immediately sprung up between Marisa's Master Spark and the armor she'd aimed at, absorbing most of the energy of the spell and dissipating the rest, the Ordinary Witch dropped her arm in shock, her jaw following shortly after. That was the second time in a year her spell had had no effect on her target.

"_You __should __listen __to __your __friend__, __child__!" _cackled the same voice that had thrown up the barrier. The Spellcrafter, or so the mental nudges claimed. _"__That __was__, __however__, __an __impressive __display __of __raw __power__. __You __would __do __well __as __an __apprentice__."_

Marisa was tired of the smoke and mirrors the Court was offering up. "Oh, shut up, you stupid piece of junk!" she shouted indignantly. "Why don't you just show yourself?! I know a Soulbind when I see one!" Her master had been the "victim" of a Soulbind, which bound a person's soul to an inanimate object. In Mima's case, that object had been her prized dagger. Soulbindings were notoriously difficult to dispel without destroying the item in question, and although they could be used on a living being, if the item the being was Soulbound to was destroyed, the backlash would be very severe and very damaging to the being's soul.

After challenging the court about the Soulbound armors, various additional voices rang out in the room. One much older-sounding voice stood out amongst the rest, saying _"__The __child __is __well__-__educated__. __Unrefined __and __ungraceful__, __but __well__-__educated __nonetheless__."_

Seiga, who'd been watching the whole thing with well-hid interest, chose this moment to speak up. "I wholly agree!" she commented, stepping forward to take her place next to Marisa. "Lords and Ladies of the Court of High Magic, allow me to introduce myself. I am Seiga Kaku, teacher and owner to this little bundle of energy you see here." She gestured to Marisa who grimaced softly. "I have yet to refine her into a proper lady, but as you can see, she's quite powerful regardless of any refinement or otherwise."

Marisa wasn't gonna hear another word of it. "Pipe down, Miss Kitty!" she grumbled, pocketing her _hakkero_and shoving a frustrated Seiga into Byakuren. Byrakuren, for her part, was actually receptive, and had managed to lose a majority of the indignation that had gripped her at the start of the situation. "My only master was Lady Mima!" the Ordinary Witch exclaimed. "Nobody else!"

The mention of Mima sent another wave of whispers and mutterings through the Court, only this time, rather than complementing Marisa on her aspects, various portals opened up beneath the thrones the armors sat on. From beneath each throne came a member of the Court of High Magic. The one that caught Marisa's eyes, though, was the one that came from the portal under the Witch Queen's throne. By far the youngest-looking of all the Court Mages, the Witch Queen shared many features with Marisa herself: blonde hair, amber eyes, a small chest (something Marisa was generally displeased about on normal days), a ponytail rather than a braid, and a nicely decorated tiara to go along with her strapless gown and Angelhair gauntlets. She even shared Marisa's height, right down to the half-inch.

"Who _are _you?!" a bewildered Marisa asked as she drank in the similarities.

In a voice that, if not for the culturing, the accent, and the word choice, would sound like it had come from Marisa's own mouth, the Witch Queen responded. "I am Allanna, the Witch Queen of the Court of high Magic."

* * *

Alright, I apologize for not continuing the mess established by the previous chapter, but Marisa had stolen the spotlight and this chapter was getting ready to hit an additional two pages at least if I'd added that to this. Anyway, standard disclaimers apply, etc, etc.

More on Adam, Annaliece, and Jacqueline in Chapter 3!


End file.
